One Last Time
by emxpheral
Summary: "Baby I don't care if you got her in your heart, all I really care is you wake up in my arms." They really should've met much sooner. It's the honesty of it. They're lives intertwine in more than one way, way too often. In Greendale, a seemingly small town where everyone knows everyone, the real stories lie in the lives of the residents.


They really should've met much sooner. It's the honesty of it. They're lives intertwine in more than one way, **way** too often. In Greendale, a seemingly small town where everyone knows everyone, the real stories lie in the lives of the residents.

It's the town where Dorothy Walker took her young daughter, Rosalind Walker to the supermarket every Sunday and the park every Friday. It's where the town folk lived their daily lives in routine and tradition, no matter how suffocating it turned out.

It's where Evelyn Kinkle found herself trapped in a marriage gone sour. So she put in energy toward giving everything to her children, putting Tommy in a shop class on Sundays and taking her youngest Harvey Kinkle to the supermarket with her. When her husbands vice grip on her was just to much, on those days she would take both boys out to the park and they'd play.

In retrospect, they should've met sooner than they did.

It's finally Rosalind's first day at Baxter elementary school that they meet. Six year old, Rosalind Walker, felt like she was going to throw up in the back on her moms new SUV. "Mommy I don't feel so good. My tummy hurts, can we go back home?" Roz says as she pushes up her small glasses with a pout that could get her out of jail if she tried.

"Baby, it's just your nerves. Don't try that pouting stuff with me, you know it only works on your father. You gotta be strong Rosalind." Dorothy says with an amused smirk painted on her lips, reflection bouncing off the rear view mirror.

Roz sucks her teeth, "But mom I don't wanna start a new school, Riverdale wasn't a bad school mommy, I had friends there."

"Well then you'll make new friends. You know your mommy had to get you here so it would be easier for me to pick you up. Mommy doesn't work at Riverdale hospital anymore, so there is going to be some changes. Look at it this way, at least we dont have to change houses, we staying right here in Greendale, everyday" She mutters.

"I'm not gonna make any friends with these alien eyes and monster puffs mommy!" The child complains, arms crossing with frown settled in her face, two seen space buns settled on her head golden in the sun streaming through the car window.

Dorothy's eyes narrow and her eyes brows furrow, Roz sat up knowing her mother was upset. "Now you listen to me Rosie, if anybody I mean any body wants to tell you anything about your hair you just tell them that you got that beautiful hair passed down from a long lineage of queens! Women who mattered in this world. Your hair is who you are and that is a smart and beautiful girl, don't you forget that." Her mother rants, as Roz looks out the window to the tall trees and orange leaves on the ground.

"Yes mommy", Roz sighs exasperated as her mother pulls over.

Rosalind's bright yellow shoes reach the pavement and she hears her mother drive away. She sees the students being dropped of by their parents. Some kissing them good bye followed by kids running away and groups of friends together. Rosalind gulps and pushes her glasses up, _I don't need nobody, be strong just like mommy said._

Just like that she feels her head rise up along with her chin as she hears the school bell ring and enters with everyone else to the classrooms.

* * *

Rosalind just can't believe her luck.

On the first day of all days she meets a really shy girl with brown hair and light freckles on her face, Susie. During snack time they promise to be best friends no matter what, pinkies tied and all.

Then a blonde haired boy with a mean glare pushes Susie as she tries to empty out her lunch tray, leaving the garbage everywhere him and his four other goons laugh.

Roz quickly realizes Susie's only shy because she gets pushed around a lot, she knows a thing or two about bullies too.

"It's okay Rosalind." Susie says from her stance in the floor picking herself up.

_It's really not okay_ Rosalind hears herself say in her head.

Just as she feels her mouth open ready to chew them out and her glare at the boys hardening for hurting her new best friend when a voice calls out "Hey! Leave her alone." A short girl with blonde hair takes a protective stance to Susie, whose trowing the trash with a renewed hope highlighting her features and an awestruck Rosalind.

"Oh I'm so scared what are you gonna do short stack?"

"I'll tell on you Zach Feldman, I'll tell Ms. Morrison you were the one who put the glue on her seat yesterday and not Gary Truman."

"Your such a tattle tale Sabrina Spellman, that's why nobody wants to be your friend and your weird." Kids gathered around the scene playing out in front of the cafeteria began laughing at her and just as Sabrina was about to turn around frown on her face.

With a chin tilted upward Rosalind found herself saying, "Oh yeah? I wanna be her friend."

Finding her voice from the background a now confidently smiling Susie says, "Yeah I wanna be her friend too."

"Cool you can all be weirdos together." Zach says getting laugh out of the students once again, the crowd disperses as he walks away but they don't matter. All Rosalind sees are the smiling faces of her new found friends and the beginning of something great.

"You guys can call me Roz."

Then there's _him_.

It's the next day, Roz was dropped off again waiting for her friends in front of the court yard when she sees softest boy with the softest brown eyes she's ever seen.

Harvey Kinkle likes to think he's a cool guy. His older brother always tells him so, his mother always tells him too so it must be true. So as he's walking to meet his friends on their usual corner in front of the school he doesn't understand why he loses all sense of body functions at the sight of this one girl but he does.

Harvey almost trips on his way to his friends when he sees her because she's just so pretty, it's the only way to explain it other than her having superhero or villain powers and she doesn't look that cool . Two sheen puffs proudly stand atop her head and she looks at him with these round eyes that hold him. When he finally looks away and gets to the guys they laugh and tease.

All the while Roz giggles at the sight of him wondering if he's okay.

"Does Harvey Kinkle have a crush on the new girl?!" A voice calls out, the boys laugh.

"Keep your voice down man!" Harvey says looking around wondering if she's still around.

"Why you don't want her to hear you've got cooties?" Zach yells to the class in the yard from his spot leaning in the tree.

"Shut up no I don't!" Harvey whines at the insistent teasing and the sounds of the young boys laughter.

"Why do you like her anyway? her hair's too big. I bet you could fit two apples in those puff balls." Zach says and the boys laugh.

Harvey looks down at the ground, "Don't talk about her like that." He says weakly.

"What was that Kinkle?"

"Just-just leave her alone Zach." Harvey stutters.

"Aww Harvey likes the new girl." Another boy sang out soon everyone joined in the chant.

"Yeah Harvey likes the new girl" Zach sang, as Harvey's fist clenched.

"No I don't!"

"Oh yeah prove it? Put gum in her stupid hair since you don't like her so much." Zach says with a smirk a chorus of "ohhh" "he's not gonna do it" follows.

Harvey gulped as Zach put a stick of gum in his open palm, "What are you gonna do Kinkle?"

Everyone's in there classrooms and as Harvey walks up to Roz, his hand shakes.

The next thing she knows, she's got gum in her hair, Harvey's eyes are as wide as he thinks there ever gonna get and a slur of apologies follow only to be out voiced by her cries for help with the sticky assailant in her hair. She officially hates this day and Harvey Kinkle.

* * *

There all ten when Harvey's mom dies in a horrible car accident. The whole community shows up to the funeral of Evelyn Kinkle and to the house with every different assortment of food imaginable. Harvey is told to stand up straight and is shoved around by his drunk father. Tommy tries to distract him a couple times as he usually does with TV and errands while he cleans up after dad's messes.

In the wake, Sabrina, the pretty blonde girl from school, hugs him for the first time and he's so nervous, hands sweaty, he thinks he's gonna throw up, she gives him a light smile and leaves; a part of him wishes she didn't. Harvey's eyes are still wide and Tommy asks what's wrong when he sees him.

Harvey blinks, "Sabrina Spellman just hugged me."

Tommy chuckles and pats his little brother in the shoulder, "Girl drama already? And here I thought I was gonna have to wait a couple years."

"Shut up Tommy."

Then he sees her and the lightheartedness of the moment passes and he's filled with dread, Harvey stiffens. Noticing once again his brothers expression and where his eyes traveled to he chuckles again, murmuring to himself this time, "Ahh they grow up so fast." Harvey still hears him, his brow furrows and he shoves Tommy off. His laugh provides Harvey with a little solace on such a bleak day.

Harvey knows Tommy would rather put up a front than see how he's really grieving in some ways he's grateful for it and in others, he just wishes he could help. He can't imagine it's easy being the older brother to someone who says they see demons, Harvey shakes the painful memory away, puts the awful shade of red out of his mind.

Harvey's eyes find Rosalind's again and the stiffness of his body returns. It fades when she gives him a sad soft smile across the room that says _I'm sorry_, Harvey graces her with one of his own and she shrugs.

Harvey breathes, and for the first time in a while for some reason he thought things were gonna be alright.

* * *

Flash forward forward a couple years later, there all fourteen and Baxter middle school was in full swing and adamant chatter filled the soon to be transformed cafeteria because of the awaiting annual homecoming dance. Three girls sitting in their usual spots in the lunchroom had a conversation of their own regarding the dance while one was in her own head, a million miles away.

"So I was waiting on him to ask me because it seemed like he was, but he just said he had to go home." Sabrina says from her seat opposite Susie and Roz, a pale hand settled under her chin.

"Maybe he was nervous?" Susie replied

"I don't know, I mean he kind of seemed like he was. What do you think Roz?" Sabrina asks, eyes narrowing at her friends unfocused gaze.

"Roz?" Susie calls to her.

_"I just think that we are not doing enough for the people out there who really need our help, we are panthers baby. We should be out there doing what we need to do for the good of the people!" Dorothy Walkers voice exclaims into the void of the Walker living room. Roz sits perched at the top of her brown stair case arms loosely wrapped around her figure._

_"What we should be doing is looking out for the good of this family! Of course it's important to stay woke and fight the good fight but how long until fighting costs us our lives. Things got dangerous with that life style Baby." Micheal Walker replies to his wife's irrationality, reaching out to her trying to get her to understand._

_"Jesus Dorothy we aren't kids anymore, we aren't teenagers, we're raising one and you gotta be there for her."_

_"You don't tell me what I don't do and do for __**my**__ daughter okay." Dorothy yells, pointing an accusatory finger at him._

_"She's just as much mine as she is yours, don't don't do that. At least I'm acting like it."_

_"Micheal, I don't wanna hear another word." Dorothy warns._

"Roz!" Susie says again, worried expression on her face, "You okay?"

Roz blinks, back to reality and meets her friends concerned expressions with a complacent one of her own, she tries to tug for a smile, "Yeah guys I'm fine just tired, I'll see you guys at the dance? Yeah?"

As Roz gets up the bell rings, and her friends share a look.

* * *

When Roz gets home the air just doesn't feel the same, a once warm cozy place felt desolate and cold.

She's alone in her homecoming dress, awaiting her mom whose been late to just about everything recently.

The heel of her black shoe clanks against the hardwood of the floor as she paces back and forth in her red dress. She sees the bright yellow light of her mothers black SUV in the garage and she gets outside with everything.

"Finally! Mom give me the keys I gotta go." Roz breathes out, palm up awaiting the keys in her hand.

"Oh honey you look beautiful." Her mothers eyes tear up, and Roz drops her awaiting hand looking to her mother confused.

"Mom are you okay?" She asks eyes narrowed.

"How about I drive you honey? Come on get in the car." Dorothy says sniffing huddling her things back in the car as Roz looks to her confused. "Well come on baby wouldn't want you to be late to your first high school dance would you?" Dorothy says on the brink of releasing a set of tears. In all her fourteen years, Roz had never seen her mother cry; no less cry to take her to a school dance so to say she was confused was an understatement.

The car ride is spent in silence. It's composed mainly of moments her mother would look at her for long periods of time and Roz would remind her the light was green and they'd go. They finally get to Baxter high and Dorothy looks to her for what seemed like forever, and cups her cheek, "My beautiful baby, you've grown into such an amazing educated young woman." Roz's eyes widen, _okay so my moms officially lost it_, she thinks. "Mom what's going on?" Roz asks confused.

"Go on and have a good time, don't worry about me. I'll be fine. Make sure to get Susie to drive you home. I'll be taking the car with me."

Roz hand drifts to the door handle, and it sills when she looks back at her mom. Dorothy has tears in her eyes again, "It's alright honey go on." The young teen walks out of the car and doesn't turn back, already fearing the worst as she steps through the school doors to the gym.

* * *

Roz gets back home an hour later, feeling an intense aversion to what awaits her. She looks at the simple cobble stone in path and steps leading to her once cozy brick home from Susie's car window and wants so badly to be far away. Susie had been the first of her friends to get drivers license, never mind the age limit her dad was able to pull a few strings. Most kids in Greendale had been learning to drive since they were in car seats.

"Roz are you sure your okay? You've been spacing out all night. We can go to my place? I can call brina and we could have a slumber party? All you'd have to do is go in now and ask your dad." Susie asks her softly.

Roz smiles, _and that's why she's the best_, "It's cool Susie, I've just got some stuff to deal with my family, my mom was acting weird before she dropped me off. I think we just have to figure stuff out." She lightly smiles, hoping to death she'll believe it.

"Alright Roz but call me if you need anything okay? Also careful on those steps, cobblestones and heels do **not** mix."

"I will" Roz laughs as she leaves her friends car and makes her way to the door._ Moms car isn't in the drive way, huh_ she notices.

Roz gets in the house and she's greeted the same feeling she got when she came home from school, a cold and desolate energy only thing different this time, her father was here.

That feeling she feared for the worst came back with a vengeance.

Roz rushes up to walk towards him, head in his hands, he looks up to his little girl whose not so little anymore and gives her a weak smile, "Hi honey how was the dance?"

"It was nice. Where's mom?" Roz asks, getting straight to the point. _Just like her mother_ Micheal thought, staring off into space wondering where it all went wrong.

"She left."

"What? where?"Roz asks, a million questions springing to her mind.

"I don't know baby, I just know she isn't coming back."

Roz backs away from her father taking in the news, and walks toward the stairs to her room.

"Rosalind honey...I'm so sor-" Roz already shaking her head frantically as tears form, "No, No dad don't apologize. Its not your fault. I've just got to get to my room."

Roz locks her self in her room, breathes and cries. Cries for the woman who would take her to the supermarket on Sundays, for the woman who told her her hair was beautiful and for the woman who would take her to the park nearly every Friday, _The park_ she thinks. She looks up from her stance on the floor and trades her heels for a pair of sneakers and makes her way out the door.

Her father paces downstairs in the living room, "Rosalind where are you going this time of night?" He says arms crossed, Micheal knows the circumstances of the night are strange but she's still his daughter, in his house.

"Dad I just need to go out for a walk please."

"Roz-"

"Bye Dad."

* * *

Every now and again Harvey gets a little unsettled by the noise in his house, not that there is much, but the lack of it. His mothers calming pacifying voice is gone and its been years, but his dad never lets him forget it, not that he ever would. Sometimes Tommy's ever patient smile isn't enough. He's got plans and friends and a life. So once and in while Harvey quietly leaves and walks around town, Tommy's at a party and his father is too drunk to notice.

Harvey walks for what feels like hours. He feels his feet wandering of their own volition as he thinks about where he is in life so far. With joy division blaring in his ears, he thinks of Sabrina and her friends. They've all been hanging out as of late ever since him and Susie were paired to do an anatomy project together. Since then he's been like additional member to their group, and then theirs this unspoken thing with Sabrina. He thinks back to being that 10 year old kid with his world collapsing around him, a pretty girl giving him a hug and bringing good feelings to light in a dark place. Harvey suddenly looks down at his shoes in thought, _man I shouldn't have chickened out asking her to the dance_, he thinks to himself, upset he doesn't know what could've been. Then his thoughts drifted again as the cold front met his face to the other girl at his mothers wake and his chest tightens. Roz forgave him all with a smile, and its not like she hated him because he put gum in her hair when she was six but it was..weird because they never were really, friends.

Suddenly his view is changed by a gate, a view of a baseball field and endless grass, with his childhood playground in sight, with out knowing it Harvey realizes he's made his way to the park where his mom used to take him as a kid. He gets this aching feeling in his chest as he makes his way to the entrance, sometimes he really misses her so much it hurts and he breathes just like she always told him to when things got to much with his father. Harvey sees his condensation from his breath and opens the gate his eyeline immediately going to the swing set, his favorite playground object as a child and then he sees her. Roz and her soft cries are heard as he hesitantly makes his way to the other seat.

Harvey notices she's still wearing her homecoming dress, a short red dress that exposes her shoulders and sneakers, _Shouldn't she still be at school? Did something happen there?_ He wants to check his phone in case Sabrina or Susie texted him something that he didn't see about anything that might've happened tonight but he fights the urge.

"H-Hi Rosalind." She quickly faces the other way and brushes away her tears, breathing deeply she corrects him "it's just Roz, remember" She's corrected him on it during the many times they've all hung out together for some reason it never really sticks.

"Oh sorry." Harvey says more than sorry about just that, but that stupid fateful day he put gum in her hair and about never really trying to talk to her after that.

Harvey looks to her, her thick glasses are off and her face has light pink tint as the autumn breeze picks up carrying her curls around.

"You know I'm really sorry about that day with your hair, I didn't really mean to do it you know I just wanted to fit in with my friends and they're not my friends anymore they haven't for a long time. I'm sorry I let them tease Susie for so long. I-I'm just sorry." She sniffles and finally looks to him, "you don't have to worry about the hair thing I got over that a long time ago." She lets out a breathy laugh, so soft as if it was barely there at all. "But I'm really not the one you should be apologizing to for Susie, that's for her."

"Right" he says meekly as he starts to swing.

They sit in comfortable silence, enjoying the cool air, and swirling yellow and orange leaves. They're both not looking at each other when Roz sneaks a couple glances his way and tells him that her mom left and she was here because this is where she used to take her as a little girl.

Harvey looks away, "You know we really should've met sooner than we did, my mom used to come here with me all the time too." Roz looks at him as if realizing the situation, "Harvey I'm so sorry, I didn't think-"

"It's fine Roz, it was four years ago." Four years that his dad wouldn't let him forget, four years of his brother single handily trying to keep the family together, four years of burying himself in his drawings and music. His mother always loved his drawings.

Again there's a silence for a while, two figures on a swing set in the moonlight just sit. "You know some stupid part of me thought she'd come back here, that she'd just know just where I was and take me back home, take us both back home." Her face is still wet streaked with tears.

Harvey has never had to deal with a crying girl before and his palms start to sweat, he's been hanging around Sabrina more often and thus her friends because they're cool people but he's never felt really accepted by Roz yet, it was good to clean the air. He didn't want to set her off in anyway.

"It's not stupid, to want to see your mom again. It just sucks that some white dude that um..does something to the patriarchy, came in her place." Harvey knows that Roz is all about social justice, her parents especially and he's still learning. She lets out a laugh, a strong one that he can hear this time, he'll count it as a win.

"They hold up the patriarchy, Harvey."

"Oh okay cool." His eyes widen as he says it, and Roz's one eye brow raises, in amusement. "I-I mean not cool like cool but I mean- I get- I unders-" the metal chain of the swing set rattles as Roz laughs with her entire face, eyes crinkling, head tilted back hand holding her stomach.

Leaves swirl around as the cold front comes and her laugh rings in his ear like a bell. She shivers from the cold and Harvey realizes she's still in her homecoming dress, he stands takes of his jacket, Roz looks at him in slight confusion as he puts his jacket on her shoulders. She blushes and remembers the soft brown eyes when they were six. Then she remembers this morning, Sabrina talking about how she wanted Harvey to ask her to the dance. Disappointment blooms in her chest at the realization, everyone with eyes and a pulse knew that Sabrina and Harvey had feelings for each other.

Harvey softly smiles at her while she looks down. The moonlight bouncing off her caramel skin, she puts her glasses back on and stands up. That warm feeling he felt when he was ten comes back again. The one that promised everything was going to be alright. He looks up to her from his seat on the swing set.

"Why didn't you ask Sabrina to the dance?" Roz asks, holding back has never really been one of her strong suits.

It's almost comical how fast his face changes from soft to taken aback. "Well I-" he clears his throat and feels the nervousness crawl back up like a viper, he looks back up to her face, her soft brown eyes and just breathes out, "I was chicken shit." Roz's eyes now widen at his bluntness and she lightly chuckles, Harvey's sweet smile comes back with a comfortable silence.

Roz looks away from him and back at the ground,"I uh gotta go it's getting kinda late and I don't wanna worry my dad. Especially with everything that happened." Its now that she realized the state she left her dad in, head in his hands in all, thinking his wife had left him and now his daughter too? She had to make things better at home.

"Oh uh..do you want me to walk you there?" He says strangely not wanting the moment to end.

"No it's fine." She reply's with a small smile.

"Are you sure?" He inquired further, not unfamiliar to the threat of the dark. Roz's smile unwieldy widens highlighting reassurance, "Looks like Harvey Kinkle isn't too chicken shit to take a girl home and protect her from the big bad darkness." She waves her fingers around and lets out a low "oooo" she giggles as he stands from his seat on the swings and shoves her, small grin placating his features. Soon they're both laughing and shoving each other as they both walk out of the park.

Roz's laughs pan out as they reach the entrance, and soft brown met large almond brown once again, with a light smile she says "Goodnight Harvey, and uh thanks for...this." He feels his head shaking as a response,"Anytime, night Roz.", And he's rooted in the spot, he can't let him self go and they stare until Roz turns around makes her way down the familiar path to her house. Harvey still standing there, on the spot, watching her leave like a creep. He's about to turn around and scold himself when he sees her look back, soft smile still settled on her face, eyes rolling, she looks at the ground again toward the path ahead of her.

Harvey watches until he can't see her anymore and finally turns around.

* * *

They spend way to much time in the library, Roz helps him with his English homework and every now and then he'll show her a drawing and she'll come up with stories for them.

"Okay so she's a zombie mom with a cookie cutter family and they all...murder people in order to give her food to survive!" Roz exclaims marveling at her own brilliance.

Harvey lightly shades a spot on the paper featuring the zombie mom and his expression becomes confused, "Isn't that a show on Netflix though? The Santa Clarita diet?"

"What? No. This is the peak of my creative brilliance is what it is. I'm insulted that you'd think I never take my job as your comic writer seriously." Roz says jokingly hurt.

"You keep stealing storylines and I just might have to fire you Roz." Harvey shrugs, light smile painted on his face as he looks down at his drawing.

"I- Wha, Susie! Is my story a rip off-" Roz starts addressing Susie on the couch a few feet from the table, reading her aunts journal.

"Yes your story is a rip off Santa Clarita diet, frankly I'm appalled. This is lazy writing at its finest." Susie says not once looking away from the book in front of her as she cut Roz off.

Roz indignantly has her mouth open in shock and Harvey laughs, it's a hearty sound she wouldn't mind hearing more often. It's almost as if it happens in slow motion, Harvey is looking at her and she can see his perfect smile, soft brown eyes and upturned lips smiling at her then she's sees those same eyes leave her and look to another pair but this one with a short blonde bob. "Hey guys." Sabrina smiles as she sits with them. Harvey's eyes shine and Roz's stomach flops.

* * *

"Harvey I swear on my nana if you pick a romantic comedy for movie night we're not friends anymore." Roz says, exasperated from her seat on Susie's couch, limbs flailing everywhere.

"Agreed, you've picked that genre for the past three Friday's in a row." Susie says in slight concern for her friends taste in movies, as she eats her milk duds from the recliner.

Harvey brings in the two bowls popcorn from the kitchen and smooshes himself between a sleeping Sabrina and an unbothered Roz, "Hey don't judge the superior movie genre selection that brought is us comedic gold like the proposal and couples retreat. They're classics!" He argues looking at Roz' impassive face then to Susie, and gives her a look that says_ back me up here_. She gives one back, _not fighting this one bud, good luck._

"I got news for you Harv." _oh no_ Susie thinks, sinking back into the recliner, eating her milk duds awaiting the chaos.

"Rom coms, not better than Horror movies. Like at all," Roz says looking Harvey dead in the eye with her thick rimmed glasses and takes the bowl of popcorn right from his hands, his eyes widen at her statement.

Nope no turning back now, Susie thinks looking between them. She wonders when there gonna figure out this whole thing between them out, _it's probably gonna a while_, inwardly sighing.

"I'm gonna give you a minute to process what you just said and take that back." Harvey says awaiting her next words. Roz eats a kernel and replies with a confident "Nope." popping the p at the end for emphasis. Harvey nods and smiles a smile that promises mischief and makes his way toward her, "Harv what are you doing?" Roz cautiously says eating another kernel slowly.

Immediate giggles erupt from Roz as Harvey tickles her further into the couch and a lightly snoring Sabrina moves, both Harvey and Roz' heads turn to the sleeping girl, not wanting to disturb her.

"If she woke up that would've totally been your fault" Roz whispers to him, holding his forearms while his hands are still splayed on her hips, both still as to not incite the blonde to wake. "It would not" He whisper yells and their heads turn back to each other and they realize there current position and how close their faces are, Harvey can make out the almond shape of her eyes and Roz can still make out his laugh lines; she wants so badly to trace it but again she realizes where they are and clears her throat. They both look away, Harvey turns his face to Sabrina's sleeping form and says, "At least your not at Sabrina's level of love for horror movies, that would be horrible." His words just oozing fondness and affection at the sleeping girl.

"Yea, I know right." Roz says adjusting herself to the couch more, feeling a familiar swoop at the stomach.

Susie sits up setting the empty box of milk duds on the table, _oh yeah were gonna have to wait years_, she thinks growing tired at the thought.

* * *

There at their usual spot in the back table near the computers in the library, while Roz tries to decode the famous Sir Lancelot and Queen Genevieve poem to Harvey. Endless rows of books surround them and a shroud of papers compiled nicely on the edge of the hardwood brown table.

"So basically Tennyson is saying through the use of endless creative metaphors and personification that Lancelot and Genevieve would do anything for their love and each other even die." Roz sums up with finality looking to Harvey's bewildered expression. "Okay what do you not get?" She asks, a stray hair falls in front of her face as Harvey looks at her he has the strangest powerful urge to push it behind her ear. He quickly realizes that she awaiting his response, when her eyebrows raise, "I uh, Well I just think its about something different that's all." He responds, looking down toward the book.

"What do you mean?" Roz asks, curious on his outlook of the poem. "Well I just think its about finding love in whats in front of him, seeing what he has and giving everything, all of his being toward it and Genevieve receives it."

"So you think Its one sided?"

"I think Lancelot had a lot more to lose in having an affair with the kings wife, I'm saying maybe she was a little selfish."

"Wow your opinion is wrong." Roz says with an incredulous expression on her face, looking away from his gaze and back toward the book.

"What?" He asks in disbelief

"If anyone is being selfish its Lancelot, I mean sleeping with your best friends wife? Come on and he didn't even have to pay for being an adulterer and his "love" for Genevieve with his life you know who did though? Genevieve." Roz huffed.

Harvey looked at her then back down at his copy and started reading,

_'She look'd so lovely, as she sway'd_

_The rein with dainty finger-tips,_

_A man had given all other bliss,_

_And all his worldly worth for this,_

_To waste his whole heart in one kiss_

_Upon her perfect lips._

There's a stillness after he reads it between them both, she keeps her eyes on her copy and feels as his turns from the page and makes its way up to her face, to met the tug of her gaze and feel the pull they've felt so many times before. Then he speaks, "Maybe its not about what they gave up and who did more wrong than the other but the way he remembered her before they took there last kiss and the way she embraced and accepted him for who he was when it was all said and done." Harvey breathes out, and nervousness crawls back up from his stomach, even though he'd never felt more at ease with Roz than he had with anyone else. The contradicting feelings clashed and their gazes locked again.

A ping sound went off, a notification was heard from the table and both their heads turn fast to the device, "Sorry Roz I forgot to turn it off." He admits with sheepish smile and looks down at the notification, he's never been so relieved to see that Tommy texted him a picture of the grocery list.

Harvey gets his things into his bag and looks down to his phone again careful to avoid the pit of those almond brown eyes that he could fall into, and he rapidly explains his departure, "Sorry I gotta leave but Tommy just sent me this grocery list and I need to get the stuff like now. For dinner and the week and everything. So bye." Harvey says all in one sentence and with a final wave, leaves a confounded Roz in his wake.

* * *

Sabrina and Harvey finally become official in the summer after sophomore year and there group has never been closer. They go to the movies, hang out at the library, the bookstore and do normal teenager things of course.

But it's the fact that there are no more secrets between them and everything is out in the open that brings them together. Roz is going blind but gaining the sight, her cunning, Susie is talking to her dead aunt, Harvey saw an actual demon and Sabrina is a witch. However nothing was ever be normal again especially after Roz was finally struck blind.

It happens in the woods when they're on there way to the mines to expel a demon ready to reign loose on the town. The colors of the leaves are just being turned back to green as winter spells it's last goodbye. The brown trails on the ground seem endless and the path toward the mine is covered in branches, "How much longer till we get there?" Susie heaves, chalking this up to bring the only exercise she'll be doing for the year.

"Susie we've been to the mines, how do you not know where we are?" Roz breathes out as they trek through the leaves at a fast pace.

"It's probably the physical exhaustion talking, don't worry we're almost there Susie." Sabrina replies leading her friends, holding Harvey's hand as he trails next to her.

They approach an array of yellow and red signs telling them to keep out, they're at the entrance of the mine. Sabrina looks up to Harvey squeezing his hand. Roz looks at Harvey's empty expression knowing that he's thinking of his brother, _he's already lost so much_ she thinks with a sorrowful expression. Harvey looks away from the cursed entrance and kisses Sabrina's forehead as Roz and Susie gather there bearings and make there way to them.

"I'm so not doing P.E on Monday." Roz curses and Susie breathes in agreement.

They huddle together as Sabrina goes over the plan, "Okay guys so we all stick together, we all know the mine is a maze and this could very well be where the demon is and conveniently where we need to trap it so there's no means to escape." Harvey takes a deep breath and nods

along with the other morals.

"He's going to want to separate us so we're easier to manipulate, he's going to whisper certain truths to your mind but you have to ignore it so we can find him and trap him. Susie I'm gonna need you to keep a look out side the mine in case anyone else comes, Roz I'm gonna need you to touch this inscription to find out where he might be in there and Harvey," Sabrina breathes out, "just stay safe and keep next to me okay?"

He pecks her lightly on the lips, "You got it 'brina." Sabrina smiles at him, and Roz focuses her eyes on the rocks below her.

Sabrina levitates the rocks out of there path as the three of them make there way toward the core of the maze. Roz trails behind the pair, still holding hands and holding up flashlights in their other hands. _Are you lost blind girl?_ A grim scratchy voice echoes out in her mind. "Did you guys hear that?" Roz says.

"Hear what?" Harvey replies turning toward Ros.

"Never mind."

_Never mind that your in love with your best friends boyfriend, how pathetic_. Roz eyes widen at the raspy scathing voice and suddenly the light of her flashlight gets dimmer and the vision of Sabrina and Harvey in front of her gets blurred.

"Remember Roz we have to ignore the voice it's just trying to manipulate us to let it out." Sabrina cautions.

"Right" Roz breathes out in confusion as her eyes begin to blur out the brown of Harvey's hair, the blue of his jacket and the white light of Sabrina's flashlight.

"Uhh guys I think I'm starting to lose my sight now, I can't see oh my God." Roz says breathing hard now, she can't hear their foot steps anymore. "Guys?!" She yells out.

Roz feels wet tears fall from her eyes, as she whips her head around frantically trying to adjust to seeing nothing in any direction.

_Useless, you couldn't even follow your friends and lead them the right way_

The voice returns and rings back in her head like a song, she tries to cover her ears and block the sound.

_She's gonna hate you when she finds out you know, the witch. She will find out and she'll leave just like your mother and your grandmother did._

The voice brings Roz to her knees as she cries out in full on sobs. _The demon is right she's gonna hate me, they all are. They're gonna leave me._She feels the weight of her glasses on her face, there useless to her now. J_ust like I'am, useless._

"Roz?" She hears his voice clear ring out before her. Harvey kneels in front of her to see if she's okay as she looks up to follow the sound of his voice. "Roz..your eyes.." he says rooted in the spot at the sight of her, the soft brown he always knew becoming a startling gray .

"I know, I can't see!" She exclaims frantically. The tears roll out once again,and make there way down her cheeks.

_You can't see him anymore and you never will again. You'll never see anyone you love again._

Rosalind cried out loud sobs at the insistent demonic voice, "I can't see you." She cries out.

Harvey's heart breaks at the sight of her and hearing her cries, they have to get out of here. "Look Ros, brina found a way out of here, you've been trapped here for three hours okay-"

Roz looks up from her hands and sniffles, "What? no, that's impossible I just lost track of you guys." Her breathing becomes labored again, in out , in out.

_No one can save you Rosalind Walker, no one will care._

Roz' eyes shut tightly.

"No Roz listen to me," Harvey says his hands now intertwining with hers, anchoring her to his words "We found the demon and trapped it, it's just all in your head, okay? You got lost, so I came to get you and Sabrina gave me this red yarn so we can get back." He breathes out to her hoping to everything they can make it out of this.

"I need you to slow down your breathing okay? In. Out." Harvey eyes frantically watch over her face trying to calm her breathing.

Roz's greys still on him and they shut as she breathes, _in. Out._

_I'll keep you here with me where you belong, forever._ The voice picks at her mind and reverbs.

"Roz..hey, you with me?" Harvey asks his breath fanning across her face, she startles at the proximity and his voice. "Do you still hear it's voice?" He asks brows furrowed, suspecting the reason for there self imposed captivity.

_He will never love you the way he does the witch_

More unwilling tears roll out, as Roz faces the ground and lets out a meek, "Yes" in response.

"Hey Roz just focus on my voice, just me." Soft yet calloused hands cup her wet cheeks, the red string rests on the right side of her face, tied around his index finger, she holds her breath. She wishes so badly more than ever she could see him. Read the look in his eyes, the curve of his mouth, his laugh lines. Roz wishes so badly she could see him and is at the same time, more than grateful she can no longer see what she can't have.

A beat passes and they breathe together, Harvey feels a tug on his heart and a warmth that burns from his chest to his stomach, it spreads like a wildfire. Then he feels the tug on his hand, more specifically his index finger. Sabrina his mind rings out, putting out the fire in his chest with a swift feeling of guilt taking over his gut. Sabrina had pulled on the yarn signaling the time they had left.

Harvey drops his hands from her face and pulls Roz up, and tugs on her left hand and leads them back out following the string. Roz's heart skipping a beat and feeling heavy with every passing step and turn.

They make it out of the cave and the smell of Sabrina's citrus shampoo wakes her from her spell when her best friend takes her in to her arms. The seemingly endless stream of tears roll down her face once again and her eyes shut close breathing in the scent of her. Sabrina her best friend since she was 6, was embracing her like she was her life line right after she almost kissed her boyfriend. "Its okay, Your okay, You made it out, You did it." She hears Sabrina's voice whisper and Ros feels her eyes shut tighter holding her friend for dear life.

Roz feels Susie's small arms wrap around then both, and a sad smile rests on her face. She feels Harvey's eyes on her like a ray of light, she can't see it but knows the weight of his gaze, right down to the bone, it makes her shiver, must be my cunning, Roz thinks, she hopes.

When they finally let go, and Susie asks her for the millionth time if she's really okay, Roz hears Sabrina swarm Harvey with deep kisses, the rustling of fabric and smacking of lips the main indicator. Roz's eyes find their way downward when she feels Harvey's gaze again, with Sabrina in his arms, it's almost as if the wind whispers with his eyes, a familiar phrase they've conveyed without words before.

_I'm sorry_

* * *

"So you can see the future right?"

"Well not exclusively, sometimes things from the the past and things happening around me now that I wouldn't know about if I didn't have the cunning." Roz tells Harvey, as the sunlight glistens into his room through the cracks of the dark curtains. It's a regular Sunday morning, they had to study for an English test, a break was needed and here she was adjusting the crossed position of her leg on his bed feeling it fall asleep as he absorbs the information. Harvey's across from her on his bed, mirroring her position.

"I wanna know about my future. And I know based on what you just told me that might not be what you see, but I still wanna know." He tells her, eyes alight with a renewed hope.

Roz face contorts to one of caution, " I don't know Harvey, I mean I think letting people know they're future is kind of dangerous don't you think?"

Harvey thinks about it for a second, "Okay so how about this if you think it's something I think I can live without knowing, don't tell me." Roz snorts at his request.

"That's so general how will I know what to tell you?" She exclaims crossing her arms.

"Something I _**can**_ live with out knowing Roz, hello if I die! Duh." Harvey responds, stating the obvious. He notices her persistent hesitance, "Look you don't have to do it if you're not comfortable." He says in a gentle voice.

"It's not that I just hadn't...thought about you dying is all." She says with a frown on her face.

"I was only kidding Roz, I'm only asking you because I trust you." She can feel his eyes on her again burning through her grey eyes, _shame I'll never get to see them Susie always mentions how hot they are_. Roz mulls it over in her head again, the pros and cons and ultimately, "I'll do it." She nods before she can talk her self out of it.

"Really? Okay so what do you have to do? Touch me, right? Be careful Roz, I'm spoken for." Harvey says with a playful smirk.

"Famous last words Kinkle, watch it." Roz replies just about sick of him and the way the sunlight bounces of his brown hair and how his smile is that much brighter because of it.

She adjusts her legs again and tries to get comfortable, she takes his hand and takes a deep breath, Harvey's even closed his eyes for good measure, "Okay I'm seeing something." She says in a serious tone.

Harveys eyes pop open and he exclaims in excitement, "What?!"

Roz's eyes are still closed and her eye brows furrow, "I see...a bright light...fog...water and oh my- Harvey!"

"What?! What do you see Roz." He says grip on her hand tightening, "I see...aliens! There comin-" she's tackled by Harvey and her giggles interrupt her false proclaims.

"Aliens really Roz?" Harvey says as he sits up a soft smile resting on his features. He pokes her face until she answers, "Really?!"

Roz' giggles don't cease even when she speaks, "That's for the comment." She breathes out, readying her body for an actual reading "okay I'm ready to actually tell you know, sorry" Roz says reaching out her hand.

"No your not" Harvey says indignantly taking her hand with a false sour expression, Roz feels her face light up with a warm smile. "Your right I'm not." She takes a deep breath,_ in. Out,_ brushing off the memory of those soft brown eyes in the mines, she takes his hand.

_"How do you know it's gonna be a girl?" Roz hears a voice echoing in her mind, it's mature and familiar. The view gets easier to see the more she focuses. There's two people sitting on a couch, a woman and a man. She's pregnant._

_"Because I just know." He responds, Roz can see his face clearer now, it's Harvey. He's wearing a blue collared shirt and jeans, his brown hair is cut short and he has facial hair; scruff. He reaches out to touch the woman very pregnant stomach._

_"So you had Sabrina give Ambrose a call and do his witchy pregnancy gender test thing." Roz realizes why the voice sounds so familiar it's her, Staring at her own future. What the-_

_"Yep. I mean no-" Harvey sighs as Roz gives him a look, "Okay so I did but I really wanted to know, I couldn't wait until after the baby was born."_

_"Uh yeah you could've then it would've been like we'd agreed." Roz hears her self say as she pouts at him._

_"Come on babe when have we ever done something according to plan?" Harvey pouts back and they meet in the middle faces inches apart._

_Roz hears herself sigh somehow in content and exasperation, "You're lucky your cute." She says and their lips finally meet, it's a sweet slow kiss, she feels she's intruding on something even though it's her._

_Harvey cups her face as their lips part and looks at her like she's his world as his other hand finds her stomach, Roz looks at her self smiling so big, she doesn't even remember the last time she smiled like that and her heart feels heavy._

_"No more calling Sabrina for this type of stuff okay, she's high priestess now. She doesn't have time to make pregnancy house calls." Roz says putting her pointer finger to Harvey's chest making her case known. His hands go up in surrender "okay okay. Just as long as you don't go texting Susie every time the baby kicks, she's on her book tour. She doesn't need he distraction."_

_"What? I don't do it __**everytime**__ , I mean-" now Harvey gives her a look and he laughs at his wife's shocked expression, her diamond rings glistens in the sun as he takes her hand. "Honey she told me to tell you to slow down a little bit with the baby talk, you can still talk to her about it absolutely. But your kinda driving her crazy. Please don't kill me." He says with a flinch proceeding with caution not wanting to test his wife's mood swings._

_Roz watches herself look away from her husband in shock, still holding his hand, "well at least I got yo- woah she's eager in there." Roz suddenly feels a fluttering in her stomach and she touches the flat surface, she looks back up at the future version of her. Her and Harvey cooing at their future child, hands interlocked at the stomach._

Roz gasps, opening her eyes, waiting to hear Harvey's voice, "Roz you okay? What happened? What did you see?" He asks as she breathes deeply, wanting more than anything to see those soft brown eyes again, _but I guess those eyes are gonna spend the rest of their life looking at me,_ Roz thinks taken back by the outcome.

She feels Harvey's hesitance to touch her again and his concern so he turns her face toward him, "What happened?"

Roz finds herself smiling, there maybe a million obstacles between them now but shes not going to add one by risking it not happening in telling him what she saw so she leaves it at, "Just something you can live without." She says as she leaves his room.

A beat passes and he jogs behind her trailing to catch up. "What the hell does that mean?"

_If only you knew Harvey Kinkle, if only you knew._


End file.
